We took a family trip to Jylland, Denmark recently and it reminded me of how much I love being able to take my work with me wherever I go. And it reminded me of how much I love working in the outdoors.
Sure, I love my home office and studio, where I do most of my work.
But there is no better feeling than setting up my laptop next to a cup of coffee whilst surrounded by the great outdoors. It can be whilst on the road exploring, or just out in a park near where you usually work. As long as it’s not too sunny (which makes work life outside a bit difficult *squints at screen*), or too cold (self-explanatory). The fresh air and the calming sounds of nature sets the scene for the best focus and inspiration I’ll be likely to find.
Sure, sometimes I need specific tools such as a big 5k retina screen (4k video editing is hard without a 5k monitor), a Wacom tablet (illustrating with a mouse just doesn’t feel or turn out right), a decently sized DJ mixer (the super-mobile ones are never good enough it seems) – and those times your main office/studio is always going to win – but for all the work that can be done on a laptop, which is quite a lot, the outdoors wins. Photo processing? No problem. Video editing? Check. Website development? You bet. Graphic design? Yep. Copywriting? Yes indeed.
Being able to and liking the idea of working and travelling at the same time sets you up for a special kind of freedom.
People like different things. Some people like stability. Some like predictability. I like freedom.
Freedom to work whenever I need to. Freedom to work wherever I want to. Freedom to stop working if there are more important things happening. That, of course, can come with compromises in other areas, such as the ones mentioned above. I’m generally fine with that though, as long as I’m able to take care of my family, pay my bills and keep my clients happy.
Set yourself up for a better work/life balance by surrounding yourself with your close ones.
For me it also feels great if I can combine being with my close ones while I get stuff done, as I have a tendency to immerse myself in my work for long periods of time without even looking up. Having my family around me while I work makes me take breaks even if I normally wouldn’t, which helps me keep a more balanced approach to my work and more importantly helps me spend as much time with my loved ones as possible.
This, of course, is a double-edged sword – especially with little toddlers running around while your on an important deadline – and it only works if you are not feeling stressed out or pressured in which case it’ll most likely backfire horribly (both as far as the work goes and your loved ones goes).
Anyway… I write this to inspire myself – and maybe others – to take the work outside more often. To remind myself of how good it feels, so I don’t forget it while grinding along in my stuffy office when there’s a perfect shady spot in the park a block away.
So, what are you waiting for… get out there and do some work!